Mexico team under intense pressure to make it to World Cup

Updated
November 13, 2013 09:16:00

Mexico is preparing for possibly its greatest sporting humiliation. Already chastened after failing to qualify directly for next year's World Cup and only scraping into the play-offs, Mexico now has to defeat New Zealand for the right to go to Brazil. It's been a massive fall from grace for Mexico, which won gold in football at last year's Olympics.

TONY EASTLEY: No disrespect to the Kiwi soccer team but Mexico is seriously worried that it could be about to suffer its greatest sporting humiliation at the hands of New Zealand.

Mexico, already chastened after failing to qualify directly for next year's World Cup, and only scraping into the play-offs, must now defeat New Zealand for the right to go to Brazil.

And the way things are going even New Zealand may have a chance at rolling Mexico, which lately has suffered a massive fall from grace. After it won gold at last year's Olympics, its national men's team has now had four coaches in the past six months and a string of losses.

Back in September Honduras handed Mexico only its second home defeat in 78 World Cup qualifying matches. Mexico didn't recover. So now despite being ranked 24th by FIFA and with a population of 117 million people, it has to play New Zealand, ranked 79th with a population of just 4 million.

Daniel Blumrosen Juarez covers the Mexican national team for El Universal media group. He says in Mexico there's two icons - the Virgin of Guadalupe and the national football team.

(Sound of Daniel Blumrosen Juarez speaking)

"The situation is absurd," he says. "Last year we won gold, we thought we could win the World Cup. Now we've been hit by this massive shock."

The team is under incredible pressure, so much pressure, because they know they are obligated to win.

The coach of the New Zealand team, the All Whites, Ricky Herbert, is only too happy to heap more pressure on the Latin American nation in this interview he gave to Mexican TV.

You know, no matter where you go I think there's a lot of concern whether Mexico can go to the World Cup. And it's something I don't think anybody in the world would've predicted some months ago. We're definite underdogs, aren't we?

MICHAEL VINCENT: The term "underdogs" was lost in translation - the Mexican TV subtitles declaring that the New Zealanders claimed they were the victims in this clash.

Daniel Blumrosen Juarez there's more than just pride on the line in a nation that seeks escapism in football from its daily troubles.

(Sound of Daniel Blumrosen Juarez speaking)

"In terms of economics," he says, "experts have done studies that across the entire media sector, in restaurants and bars, sales of the national team's shirts, they estimate a loss of a billion dollars if Mexico doesn't qualify for the World Cup."

To help its chances as the host of the first of this two game play-off, Mexico is choosing only local players who are used to the altitude, heat, noise and pollution, which accompanies playing in Mexico City's Azteca Stadium - which will also be full of 100,000 home fans.